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Aircraft Carrier
"We shall end this quickly!" :- Aircraft Carrier captain Tactical Analysis *'Our drones will blot out the sun:' A carrier's squadrons of drones can overwhelm even the most heavily defended installation. Should any drones be shot down, the carrier can quickly and automatically replenish them. Some carrier captains have been known to use their drones to screen for more-precious Allied aircraft. *'Why so dark?:' In addition to all those combat drones, a carrier's launch bay conceals the Blackout Missile, which can be used to power down vehicles or structures from an extreme range. The missile's defensive and offensive potential makes carriers even more survivable alone, or even more useful in a strike force. *'Knight and Paladin:' Intended for concerted use with other Allied forces, aircraft carriers are purely for anti-surface operations. However, recently, the Allies have finally given in to complaints about aircraft carriers' lack of anti-air defences, and are trialling new "Sky Paladin" UCAVs off the decks of several carriers. *'Punishment at a premium:' Aircraft carriers are expensive, high-tech vessels, which mean they are a relatively uncommon sight. Though far less cost-prohibitive than some of the failed carrier designs proposed in the past, the model in use today still is one of the priciest fixtures of Allied warfare. WWIII Operational History Many of those living in the free nations have remarked that the sight of an Allied Von-Esling-class Aircraft Carrier docked at harbour is a thing of beauty. These bold, seafaring beasts are some of the most sophisticated naval vessels ever created, and are the culmination of a joint 10-year military design effort between American, German, British, and French engineers and scientists. This famous collaboration drew some flak for being reactionary to increased Soviet aggression. However, the results soon spoke for themselves, as reports of Allied aircraft carriers effortlessly securing contested waterways and borders soon began to spread in Allied nations and even the Soviet Union. Today's aircraft carriers are of course dramatically different than the relatively bloated, cost-prohibitive floating-fortress-style aircraft carriers blueprinted but never successfully launched due to the lack of a sufficient power source to fuel their voyages. The speculative design of old-style carriers was eventually abandoned when a German-engineered breakthrough in unmanned combat air vehicles (UCAVs) proved to be the missing link in the carrier's design. Though still much larger than the average ship, Allied aircraft carriers forgo the thousands of crew demanded by previous proposals for an elaborate network of automated drone manufacturing-and-launch bays, maintained and operated by a modestly-sized (and expertly-trained) crew. The result is another shining example of the Allies' commitment to efficient, specialised design and conservation of precious resources. Now in active service worldwide, any given aircraft carrier contains a full complement of Sky Knight-class UCAVs, air-to-surface fighter drones proven to be highly effective in long-range engagements against fortifications and installations. Rather than suffer wear and tear and other unnecessary exposure to harm from being left out on the decks of Carriers, the Sky Knights are concealed in launch bays belowdecks, in facilities made to monitor, control, and maintain full complements of drones at all times. The drones are fast and precise, and each is armed with a powerful 500 lb. armour-piercing bomb similar to Jethroes commonly used by the Allies' Century Bombers. After releasing its payload, a given drone must return to its carrier, where it can rearm. The aircraft carrier itself is heavily armoured and its hull can even take a direct hit from a Soviet Akula sub torpedo. Its primary armament lies with its Sky Knight squadrons, although the carrier also possesses a firing mechanism for the Blackout Missile, a tactical warhead whose blast overloads all known electrical systems in its area of effect. Overall, the sheer power wielded by these spectacular ships of war means that to helm them is one of the most prestigious posts in the entire Allied military hierarchy. Post-War Operational History It was realised during WW3 that Carriers were inordinately tied to the dependency on CIWS equipped Hydrofoils to protect themselves from any form of aerial combatant, which harmed both parties directly in carrying out their respective duties. The Hydrofoils could not scout ahead of the carrier groups far enough to be useful in acting as early warning or to find landing sites for Assault Destroyers and Landers during amphibious operations and the carriers could do little to support inland combat operations because doing so meant that their covering Hydrofoils had less time to cover their charges. Allied High Command came to the conclusion that carriers needed some sort of organic air defence, but attempts at mounting the Hydrofoil's "Icarus" CIWS onto the carrier were catastrophic. The punishing vibrations of the gun disturbed the launch cycles of the Sky Knight drones, either causing them to crash on takeoff from the internal hull bays of the carrier or landing into said internal hull bays, and their bottomless need for ammunition meant that the carrier's onboard SPAM modules had to split their time between arming the Sky Knights and refilling the Icarus's ammunition wells. The solution came to the designers of the project when watching one of the many Allied airshows showing off their air force. Specifically, the Apollo was a natural choice to make into the carrier's air defence drone, but upon shrinking down the Apollo airframe to a size capable of being launched from a carrier, it was discovered that the drone was simply too small to carry enough "Sol" autocannon ammunition to be of much use. Again, advancements in the pilot capable Apollo saved the project; the designers dropped the "Sol" autocannon completely and armed each drone with a Rattler-2 AAM. This worked much to the benefit of the carrier, as the onboard SPAM could easily change the drone's loadout between Jethro 500 lb. bombs and Rattler-2 missiles before take-off. The resulting drone system worked much like the previous Sky Knight, with a few tweaks; the carrier's crew would program the departing drone flight with its target before takeoff, and using their swarm targeting matrix, the new drones would share the load of locking onto and firing their weapons on a moving aerial target before returning to the carrier to receive their next sortie. Christened the "Sky Paladin", the curious flying triangles made their first successful sortie from the ANV "Democracy" off the coast of Great Britain, ably proving their ability to engage large airborne threats such as Kirovs and Centuries from stand-off ranges from the carrier groups they were launched from. Smaller, more agile threats proved tougher for the drones' swarm targeting matrix to engage, able to slip out of the detection radius of too many drones in the flight to the point where they just flew in confused circles trying to locate their target. Allied High Command considered this acceptable upon promises from the designers that soon the "Sky Paladin" would be refined enough in the future to be able to engage these targets. In the meantime, the Hydrofoil remains more than capable of quickly dispatching any smaller foes that menace its carrier. Just the Stats Famous Ships "Enterprise-class" The first of the Enterprise class carriers, famous for its unveiling and use in the Second World War. Sister ship of the ANV Enterprise. Sunk by Soviet submarines during the Second World War. Assigned to 13rd Allied Task Force during the Battle of Pearl Harbour. Sunk at the Battle of Pearl Harbour. "Halcyon-class" The "Halcyon" was sunk by the efforts of the Imperial 21st Bombardment Fleet during the Battle for the North Pacific. Nearly all of her crew survived, but her captain, Captain Andersen was killed by a superheated slug that hit the bridge. Took part in the Normandy Landings. Sunk in transit by an Akula wolfpack. Last and most decorated "Halcyon-class" aircraft carrier built. She served in the Battle for the North Pacific, the Battle of the Bering Strait and the Battle of Pearl Harbour. "Von Esling-class" First aircraft carrier of the class. Flagship of General Alex Manning, at the time commanding the 6th Allied Task Force during the Battle of Tokyo. It has since been repaired after taking damage during the battle. Defended Geneva during the Invasion of Switzerland. Destroyed by Soviet forces during the Invasion of Switzerland. Flagship of the Allied Mediterranean Fleet. Took part in the Battle of Crete. Flagship of the 5th Allied Task Force, took part in the Battle of Cuba. The advanced Sky Paladin UCAVs were first introduced on the deck of the Democracy near Great Britain's coast. Flagship of the Baltic Fleet. Sunk by Soviet Akula Subs while sailing to the Battle of Pearl Harbour. The Capitol was chosen as the target for the Confederates Pelican Subhunter Helicopters. The Capitol was nearly destroyed, but survived and was repaired in Britain. Took part in the Normandy Landings. Took part in the Normandy Landings. Was part of the 6th Allied Task force during the invasion of Japan. The capitulation of the Empire of the Rising Sun was signed on its deck. Took part in the Normandy Landings. Sunk by Soviet ships in the North Sea. Late war replacement for patrolling the North Atlantic. In drydock following engine sabotage by several Thieves assisted by Dixie. Named after the USS Florida, a famous Pennsylvania-class Battleship that fought in WWII. Assigned to the Allied shipping convoys during The Silent War. Destroyed when the Dreadnought Groznyj rammed her. Took part in the Normandy Landings. Flagship of the Allied Far East Expeditionary Fleet. Appeared in the footage where it was lifted by a Nightingale Carryall, but presumed to be fake. Torpedoed while still in drydock early in World War III, leaving it out of service for over a year. Flagship of the 13th Allied Task Force during the Battle of Pearl Harbour. Sunk in a freak typhoon during the pursuit of a suspicious-looking vessel. Assigned to the 13rd Allied Task Force during the Battle of Pearl Harbour. Newest ship in the line. Assigned to the 13rd Allied Task Force during Battle of Pearl Harbour. Still under construction. Named after the famous Enterprise-class aircraft carrier "ANV Yorktown". Estimated date of completion is December 12th, 1969. Also the first carrier to incorporate the control equipment for the new "Sky Paladin" drones into its design. Category:Units Category:Units Originating from the United States